Is Psychoanalysis Appropriate for Children?

Some psychoanalysts specialise in the analysis of children. Child psychoanalysis – an offshoot of adult psychoanalysis – shares with it a common theoretical framework for understanding psychological life, while also using additional techniques and measures to deal with the special capacities and vulnerabilities of children. For instance, the young patient is helped to reveal his or her inner feelings and worries not only through words, but also through drawings and fantasy play. In the treatment of all but late adolescents, parents are usually consulted to round out the picture of the child’s life. The goal of child and adolescent analysis is the removal of symptoms and of the psychological blocks that interfere with normal development.